The "F2": A Transitional Model (1946)

Last revised: December 16, 2024

The F2 enjoyed the shortest domestic production run in Electro-Motive's F series catalog, built only from July to November, 1947. However, it was never meant to be a long-running model, only a temporary measure until the builder had worked out the problems with its latest generator.

The F2's brief catalog saw sales reach only slightly more than 100 units (A's and B's), among a handful of railroads.

These companies included Atlantic Coast Line; Atlantic & East Carolina; Alabama Great Southern (Southern Railway); Boston & Maine; Chicago, Burlington & Quincy; Minneapolis & St. Louis; Rock Island; New York Central; and Ferrocarriles Nacionales de México.

The Rock Island, ACL, and Boston & Maine were particularly big buyers, acquiring at least a dozen units each until production switched to the F3. Unfortunately, due to the locomotive's rarity, in addition to its status as a transition model, no examples were preserved.

Photos

Rock Island F2A #42 leads a westbound freight past Joliet Union Station on October 16, 1966. Roger Puta photo.

Overview

Electro-Motive's FT changed railroading forever by radically improving operations; the diesel could operate further between refueling stops, required less maintenance, and pull greater tonnage between major overhauls.

EMD ultimately sold 1.096 units between 1939 and 1945, and would have enjoyed even higher sales if not for wartime restrictions. With strong demand after World War II, the builder intended to release its latest model offering greater horsepower.

However, as Brian Solomon notes in his book, "Electro-Motive: E Units and F Units," production problems with EMD's latest D12 generator pushed back mass production on the model.

As a result, the builder released a stop gap model, the F2; it featured the latest prime mover (567B) and an updated carbody but featured a variant of the FT's D8 generator. Because of this, it was limited to 1,350 horsepower.

Externally, the F2 continued to carry the classic "bulldog" nose and streamlined carbody (although it slightly changed the steel sheathing around the front truck).

However, Electro-Motive did make some minor, visual changes in this area such as the port holes' spacing with only three incorporated into the carbody instead of the closely spaced four on the FT.

The builder also employed four exhaust fan housings on the roof and made the fuel tank more streamlined with the rest of the carbody.

Aside from these differences the F2 varied little from the FT sporting the same frame and remained at around 50-feet in length. Finally, its weight of 115 tons remained the same as the former model.

Data Sheet and Specifications

Entered Production	7/1946 (Rock Island #49)
Years Produced	7/1946 - 11/1946
Engine	567B
Engine Builder	GM
Horsepower	1350
RPM	800
Cylinders	16
Length, Over Couplers (A Unit)	50' 8"
Length, Over Couplers (B Unit)	50' 0"
Height (Top Of Rail To Top Of Roof)	14' ½"
Height (Top Of Rail To Top Of Horn)	15' 0"
Width	10' 7"
Weight (A Unit)	230,000 Lbs
Weight (B Unit)	228,000 Lbs
Fuel Capacity	1,200 Gallons
Air Compressor	Gardner-Denver
Air Compressor Model	WBO
Air Brake Manufacturer	Westinghouse
Air Brake Schedule	24RL
Trucks	B-B
Truck Type	Blomberg
Truck Wheelbase	9'
Wheel Size	40"
Traction Motors	D7b (4), GM
Primary Generator	D8, GM
Auxiliary Generator	Delco (A8102)
Alternator	D14
MU (Multiple-Unit)	Yes
Dynamic Brakes	Yes
Gear Ratio Options	65:12, 62:15, 61:16, 60:17, 59:18, 58:19, 57:20, 56:21
Tractive Effort (Continuous)	52,400 Lbs (65:12); 40,000 Lbs (62:15); 37,000 Lbs (61:16); 34,000 Lbs (60:17); 32,000 Lbs (59:18); 29,500 Lbs (58:19); 27,500 Lbs (57:20); 25,500 Lbs (56:21)
Top Speed	55 mph, 65 mph, 71 mph, 77 mph, 83 mph, 95 mph, 102 mph

Production Roster

F2A

Total Built = 60

Owner	Road Number	Serial Number	Order Number	Completion Date
Rock Island	49-38 (Reversed)	2637-2648	E617	7/1946
Chicago, Burlington & Quincy	150A, 155C, 151A, 156C, 152A, 157C, 153A, 158C, 154A, 159C	3018-3027	E648	7/1946
Boston & Maine	4250-4264	3070-3084	E649	7/1946 - 8/1946
Boston & Maine	4224A-4226A	3085-3087	E725	10/1946
Southern (Alabama Great Southern)	6700-6701	3376-3377	E675	7/1946
Atlantic & East Carolina	400-401	3419-3420	E681	7/1946
Atlantic Coast Line	324-335	3437-3448	E684	8/1946 - 10/1946
Minneapolis & St Louis	147A, 147C	3660-3661	E702	11/1946
New York Central	1604-1605	3771-3772	E721	7/1946

F2B

Total Built = 16

Owner	Road Number	Serial Number	Order Number	Completion Date
Boston & Maine	4224B-4226B	3088-3090	E725	10/1946
Atlantic Coast Line	324B-335B	3449-3460	E684	8/1946 - 10/1946
Minneapolis & St Louis	147B	3662	E702	11/1946

Export

F2A

Total Built = 14

Owner	Road Number	Serial Number	Order Number	Completion Date
National Railways of Mexico ( Ferrocarriles Nacionales de México)	6200A-6206A	3528-3534	E691	8/1946 - 10/1946
National Railways of Mexico ( Ferrocarriles Nacionales de México)	6207A-6213A	3690-3696	E707	10/1946

F2B

Total Built = 14

Owner	Road Number	Serial Number	Order Number	Completion Date
National Railways of Mexico ( Ferrocarriles Nacionales de México)	6200B-6206B	3535-3541	E691	8/1946 - 10/1946
National Railways of Mexico ( Ferrocarriles Nacionales de México)	6207B-6213B	3697-3703	E707	10/1946

A rare Rock Island F2A (#46), an FB-1 (Alco), and a trio of other first-generation EMD products lead a long freight train westbound past the station at Ottawa, Illinois on a July afternoon in 1963. Roger Puta photo.

During the F2's production, Electro-Motive had not yet established its Canadian division, General Motors Diesel. The subsidiary was established in 1950 with the first locomotive rolling out of its London, Ontario plant in August (Toronto, Hamilton & Buffalo GP7 #71).

This changed, however, during the F7's production when Canadian National, Canadian Pacific, and even the Wabash purchased the model (for its southern Ontario line).

The first F7's began rolling out of the London plant in December, 1950 (Wabash). Many F2s remained in service for many years but today, as mentioned above, all were scrapped before any could be saved for posterity.

Sources

Marre, Louis A. Diesel Locomotives: The First 50 Years, A Guide To Diesels Built Before 1972. Milwaukee: Kalmbach Publishing Company, 1995.

Pinkepank, Jerry A. Diesel Spotter's Guide. Milwaukee: Kalmbach Publishing Company, 1967.

Schafer, Mike. Vintage Diesel Locomotives. Osceola: MBI Publishing, 1998.

Solomon, Brian. EMD Locomotives. Minneapolis: MBI Publishing Company, 2006.

Solomon, Brian. Electro-Motive E-Units and F-Units: The Illustrated History of North America's Favorite Locomotives. Minneapolis: Voyageur Press, 2011.